Sweet Illusions
by Ally Smith
Summary: Mother, Widow, Soldier, Survivor. Sergeant Elizabeth Michaels was just a simple soldier that got lucky one time.
1. Note to Self: Don't Die

**Introduction**

"_Quit singing that damn song Kingston!" Elizabeth shouted with a chuckle, trying to be heard over the loud voice of the man in the driver's seat next to her. He paused to chuckle punching her arm making her punch him back._

"_Has that cat stopped screaming?" Johnson in the back rubbed his temples sitting up from his place with his feet situated on Sampson's legs._

"_I don't know, I could start at any moment" Kingston said with a grin before his eyes flickered to the woman next to him who groaned_

"_Please don't" she muttered "I can't take much more, you're killing me here and remember I have a child waiting for me back home, he's expecting his ma to come home oh yeah he's become completely obsessed with those Avenger's. Or I think that's what their called, whatever they are" all at once every single man in the jeep gasped_

"_You don't know who the avengers are? You're from New York, how can't you know?"_

"_What are they?"_

"_Superheroes, like proper one's uh there's Ironman, Captain America" Sampson began counting them off on his fingers "Thor I think, Hawkman-"_

"_Hawkeye!" the other two snapped and the man rolled his eyes _

"_Fine, Hawkeye! The hulk and the black widow!"_

"_Damn I'd like some of that, have you seen the black widow? Jesus she's a beauty" Johnson said with a sleepy grin. She snorted in amusement _

"_Superheroes? In New York? You gotta be kidding me"_

"_No! They saved our asses, there were aliens! Coming through this huge portal thing, that's what my girl told me" Kingston said _

"_Right, well no offence but I think your girl might be a little out of it King"_

"_Hey, she might be a bit of an airhead but she ain't a liar" she turned looking out the window at the desert that seemed to go on forever. She'd been fighting in Afghanistan for nearly two years now, she'd also been stuck in the jeep for the past two days with the men who never seemed to leave her side. For once the sound of bombs dropping or guns being fired was silent meaning all that could be heard was the loud chattering of the men sat around her and the constant hum of the jeep. Her army kit was heavy on her small form but she ignored it shuffling down in her seat and closed her eyes intending to catch some sleep like Johnson had. Next thing she knew there was nothing._

She coughed wincing at the pain that shot through her at even the smallest of movements. There was a ringing in her ears as she moved her head to the side as carefully as she could only to close her eyes quickly seeing the burnt remains of the jeep she had been in not moments before. There was something heavy restricting her legs and she couldn't help but cough as the smoke from the fire burning a few feet away snuck up her nose and down her throat. "MEDIC?!" she called as loudly as she could which wasn't very due to her constant cough and dry throat. "MEDIC!" she called even louder before letting out a groan as the ringing slowly disappeared being replaced with the yells of the soldiers rushing around trying to put out the fires caused by the sudden bombing. Suddenly the familiar face of one of the company sergeants appeared and she looked to him saying his name as loudly as she could. He looked shocked quickly screaming over his shoulder that she was alive and they needed a medic.

"Don't worry Michaels we're gonna get you better in no time, trust me" one of medics raced over and immediately began to patch her up best he could

"Damn Michaels you're the luckiest son of a bitch I've ever met, you should be dead"

"Are you insulting my mother sir?" she murmured a small grin on her face and the medic chuckled

"Mild concussion"


	2. Born in to a light

Chapter 1

"It was touch and go for a while but she's stable now, we're keeping a close eye on her though, she's been through a lot and may need some physiological help once she's awoken and has recovered from the initial shock of surviving what she has but she's making incredible recoveries, her injuries are healing impossibly fast" Ellen Michaels let out a sigh of relief, releasing her tight grip on her grandson who was standing in front of her, tears of confusion and fear for his mother sliding down his cheeks.

"Can we see her?" her accent was heavily southern something her daughter had long since lost after years of living in New York.

"Of course but try not to disturb her, she needs rest" Ellen nodded quickly ushering Adam Michaels after the doctor and into the room where her daughter and Adam's mother was sleeping soundly, dressed in white, her brown locks surrounding her face as she took in steady quiet breaths. There were heavy burns down the left side of her face but they seemed to be healing. Ellen quickly tried but failed to stop the boy from clambering onto the bed and snuggling into her side.

"Mommy?" he mumbled quietly "It's Adam. I want you to get better okay? That's an order, I want you to wake up and give me a big cuddle" Ellen smiled sadly she didn't have the heart to pry him away

Elizabeth opened her eyes with a quiet groan before quickly shutting them again at the harsh white light. She quickly let them adjust and looked around the room, surprised to not feel any pain just stiffness. The hospital room was littered with flowers and get well soon cards and even a balloon. She slowly pushed herself into a seated position, wincing as the blood rushed to her head making her feel suddenly dizzy. She dropped back against the bed with a groan and raised a hand to her forehead letting out a sigh before she pushed herself onto her feet, fully intending on using the bathroom. She couldn't remember coming to the hospital room, all she could remember what laughing with the guys in the jeep and then waking in the wreckage of the same jeep. Her eyes widened as it finally hit her, the men were dead, she had been talking with them normally and now they were gone. They had, had a direct hit, she should be dead. She suddenly felt amazingly self-conscious about going in the bathroom, there had to be a mirror and she was certain her features were somewhat mutilated. Her fingers shot to her face but frowned feeling nothing but smooth skin. She couldn't help herself from hurrying to the bathroom, all of her worries being pushed aside by her curiosity and confusion. She pushed the bathroom door open and stepped inside quickly moving to the sink to look in the mirror gaping at her face. Nothing was changed. There was a scratch above her eyebrow but it was barely noticeable. She should be horrifying to look at, she should have the sort of face that made her afraid to go out in public but she looked completely normal. No surgery could help her with the condition she should be in. She ran her fingers over her face again; utterly convinced it was some sort of trick. She quickly backed away from the mirror her hands dropping to her sides. She entered her room again but stopped before wandering towards the door and pulling it open to peer out. People were rushing back and forth and seemed to take no notice of her so she closed the door moving back into the room. There was a call for help button beside the bed and she pressed it roughly dropping onto the bed again feeling a sudden dizziness come over her. Within seconds there was a crowd of people rushing into her room, Doctors and nurses and even the press to some extent, she blinked in surprise as the flash of a camera went off and the Doctor immediately sent the man out. She quickly yanked her hand away from the nurse that took it. "Miss Michaels, I know you're confused"

"I'm not confused, I know what happened to me, I meant to be dead or at least mutilated, why the hell do I look normal?"

"We don't know" the male doctor stepped forward, he was in his late forties with graying hair "miss Michaels, we need to speak about your condition, you have healed incredibly fast, and to a point where we were half way considering you weren't even human" he chuckled telling her he was joking but she didn't laugh. She wanted to know what was wrong with her and the Doctor coughed quickly stopping himself from laughing. "Well we're still running the tests; we'll notify your family of your awakening"

"How long have I been asleep?"

"For about 5 days. In all honestly we thought you would be under for months"

"Then something must be wrong with me"

"Nothing bad obviously, whatever deformity within your DNA helped save your life Miss Michaels, and I have to say I'm a tad jealous"

"You shouldn't be, my men are dead" she let out a heavy breath

"It's obvious god means for you to have a higher purpose" she looked to the nurse stood next to her a reassuring smile on her face

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means you're special"

"What if I don't want to be special?"

"God works in many different ways, you should accept his gift to you, you obviously mean something to him. You don't have to agree with them, or even stick to the path of destiny he has laid out for you but please appreciate the gesture all the same" she nodded her eyebrows furrowing in confusion and the doctor coughed loudly

"Anyway, you're vitals look good; you should be able to leave in a few days as long as the tests we take back are positive" she nodded

"Thank you but could you just call my ma? I need to see my little boy, it's been nearly a year, he'll be five now" the doctor nodded

"Right away" all at once one by one the hospital crew disappeared until just her, the doctor and then nurse remained "I must warn you Miss Michaels you've become something of a national hero" she let out a sigh

"Great"

"I'm sorry, I know this must be difficult for you"

"That's an understatement, I shouldn't be the hero, my men should be"

"They are, but it's not often that we have a survivor of these sort of things"

"I bet not, people are gonna think it's a hoax, look at me! I look fine"

"I know, we'll figure something out" the Doctor gave her a reassuring nod "for now, just try to get some rest" she sighed but nodded falling back against the pillows running a hand through her brown knotted curls

"Can I get a drink or something Doc? My throats killing me" the doctor nodded

"Right away" he sent her one last smile before he and the nurse left, closing the door over. Then everything was silent. Elizabeth stared at the wall across from her, forcing back the tears that threatened to fall if she didn't stay strong. Her hands sat limply on her lap as a numb feeling washed over her. How was she alive? Those men were heroes and now they were dead and here she was sitting crying in a hospital room. She wondered if they'd had the funerals yet. She sighed. Their families would most probably hate her. Wondering what made her so special? Why she survived and their sons didn't? Those thoughts pushed her over the edge and the tears ran down her face. She kept back the sobs though. They wouldn't want her to cry over them, she was sure of it. She quickly lifted a hand and wiped the tears away but more just kept on coming until eventually she just covered her face and let the quiet sobs rage through her. Her shoulders heaved with the weight of the guilt that they held. She was a freak of nature. Plain and simple. It was another couple of minutes before the door opened quietly and she quickly attempted to compose herself but seeing her little boy stood in the doorway just made her breakdown as she held her arms out to him and the five year old raced into her arms, he himself bursting out crying. She laughed through her tears and held him close. Her eyes flickering to her mother who closed the door behind her, smiling as she tried not to cry. Ellen Michael's was a short thin woman with graying brown hair that she tried desperately to keep colored but there was always a gray hair or two showing. She made her way over to her daughter's bedside and wrapped her arms around her who pulled one hand away from her son to wrap it around her mother's neck, breathing in the familiar scent of the perfume her mother had used since she was a small child.

"I've missed you both so much" she said quietly "I'm so sorry, I'm never leaving you again. Not ever" she lifted her arm back from her mother to cup her son's cheeks and press a kiss on the top of his head, crushing some of the sandy blonde curls he'd gotten from his father. Her heart clenched at the thought of her deceased husband who had died so similarly to the way she almost had. They'd signed up when they were eighteen and had completely forgot about it until her husband had gotten the letter telling him he'd been called into action when their son was just a few months old years old. Her mother reached into her bag and pulled out a thermos and a bottle of water. She stared at the things in confusion before her mother explained

"Didn't think you'd want hospital food. It sucks" she smiled in thanks and unwrapped her arms around her son, who stayed molded into her shape in his tight embrace and she was fine with that, and picked up the bottle of water and downed nearly all of it in one go before grabbing the thermos and opening it to grin at the smell of her mother's homemade soup.

"Well thank you ma" she grinned and poured some of it into the cup on top and sipped at it quickly, finally realizing just how hungry she was. "This is so good. It's all been utter" she stopped herself realizing her son was still in the room and then continued "garbage, the marine stuff sucks"

"Yeah well, hospital foods probably worse now you drink up, get your strength up. I've had interviewers at me all week, wanting to get a talk with me or Adam. I politely told them to get lost of course" Elizabeth chuckled, running a hand through her son's hair continuously while using her other hand to hold her soup cup. "Sweetheart you look like nothing happened" Elizabeth's hands stopped their movement before she let out a sigh and brought the cup down to put it back on the wooden table next to her.

"I know, they just told me I had a mutation in my blood, it makes me heal incredibly fast"

"So you're a mutant then?" her daughter shrugged

"I suppose, but I've never healed fast before" Ellen nodded

"Nor you have. Maybe it was something in that explosion?" they fell silent and Ellen let out a sigh "doesn't matter, you drink up and I'll bring you in a take away or something later on"

"Thanks ma"

"No problem baby, you just rest up alright?"


	3. The Rescue Blues

Chapter 2

"And with the remarkable recovery of Sergeant Michaels, many people are saying that the whole thing was a hoax but Doctors that treated her are assuring us that the attack did happen and that Miss Michaels has suffered some sort of a mutation of" Elizabeth shut the TV off letting out a heavy sigh. This was her life now. And after another two days in hospital and another week or so at her mother's she'd finally managed to convince her ma that she was perfectly able to go home. New York had become even busier than what she remembered but she supposed an alien attack on the city would do that. Of course her son was excited to be back, at least for the chance to meet some of the Avengers. Mostly Iron man. Who was his favorite, much to her displeasure. From what she'd gathered from watching the news Tony Stark was an asshole. Plain and simple. Cared about no one but himself.

"Mommy?" she turned to look at her little boy who was standing in the doorway "there's someone at the door asking for you" her eyebrows furrowed. She hadn't heard the doorbell. She pushed herself onto her feet and made her way out into the hallway placing a hand on her sons head as she passed to ruffle his hair playfully. She reached the door of her apartment and tugged it open to reveal a man dressed in a black suit. He spoke quickly and quietly

"Sergeant Elizabeth Michaels?" she raised an eyebrow and nodded

"Yes, who's asking?" he didn't answer, instead just reached into his pocket and tugged out an envelope and handed it to her before turning and stalking off quickly down the hallway and round the corner. She stared down the hallway for a second before she sighed and stepped back inside her apartment and shut the door. She stared down at the envelope in her hands and took in the picture on the front. It looked like a bird with its wings out. She made her way into the living room where her son was sat on the couch now watching some cartoon. She dropped down next to him as she opened the envelope and tugged the papers out. Adam looked round and snuggled into her and his eyes widened when he took in the papers inside. He burst from her grip and grabbed the papers, his big green eyes sparkling with excitement as he took in all the private files of the Avengers which were in his hands. His mother sighed and snatched them back, quickly scanning over them before she tugged what looked like a typed letter out from the back and read over it quickly

Sergeant Elizabeth Michaels

If this letter has reached you by 1800 then I'd advise you to not take any calls until exactly you have will be answered in that phone call. You will be speaking to myself and my best agent. I await your compliance

Then it ended. Her eyebrows furrowed, it just raised more questions. Her eyes flickered to her phone and then to her watch. 1800 exactly. She frowned but looked round when her son jumped on her. "Why'd the Avengers send you this stuff?" her son grinned but she shook her head

"I don't know. Adam go to your room and lock the door okay? Only open it if I tell you. Anyone else says to you don't, okay?" her son's eyes widened this time with fright as he realized just how serious she was. His grandma used that tone with him as well. He gave her one last tight squeeze before hurrying into his room and locking the door behind him before slipping under his bed for safe measure. She chewed on her thumb nail for the last remaining two minutes until the phone rang. She hesitantly picked it up and held it to her ear. "Hello?"

"Sergeant Michaels?" it was a man's voice, deep, too serious for it to be a prank.

"Speaking. Who is this?"

"My name is Nick Fury. I'm the director of the S.H.I.E.L.D project, which runs the Avengers Initiative. I'd like to say more but we'd have to meet in private. Sometimes these lines aren't safe."

"Am I in trouble?" she asked quietly and Nick Fury chuckled quietly

"No, I'm sorry if I gave you that impression but I wouldn't want any outside source knowing I might be recruiting"

"Recruiting? Sir I just got back from war. I don't know if you realized but I got blown up. A bomb dropped on me and my men. I was lucky to be alive"

"I understand that, but you wouldn't be shipped off anywhere and I am fully aware of your situation. I know where you live; I know where your mother lives. I also know about your five year old son who starts school tomorrow am I right" the color drained from her face as she listened to him speak

"What do you want from me?"

"I would like to meet with you. Talk over some details. I need to know if you're in or not"

"Not, sir I'm sorry but it seems in this situation the more I know the more danger I put myself and my son in. I just want a normal life. No more war, no more fighting. I won't have him loose both parents"

"Miss Michaels I'd strongly suggest you reconsider. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity I'm offering you here" she sighed

"Sir, I… if I wasn't a mother then maybe I'd consider your offer but the stakes are too high for me. You'll have to find someone else for this team"

"I'm telling you you'd be an asset to the team, I won't stop asking"

"I don't expect you too, just leave my son out of it" she hung up and composed herself quickly before something moving from outside the window caught her eye. She quickly moved towards it and peered outside but found nothing out of the ordinary. She quickly turned away and made her way back into the hallway calling out her sons name and that he could open his door.

"Alright, you have a good day okay?" Adam nodded and she grinned before a stern look fell across her face as she sorted his jacket quickly "behave yourself, you got that?"

"Yes mom" he smiled and wrapped his arms around her neck in a tight hug just as the school bell rang and she smiled watching him run towards the school building and to where he was to line up. She stood there for a another second or two, waving at him when he went inside before she turned and made her way out only to stop seeing the black Mercedes parked right outside the gates. It looked a little out of place, and when the window rolled down revealing a man in a suit she understood. Director Fury had sent for her. She sighed

"Miss Micha-"

"Michaels yeah" she let out an irritated growl before slipping into the back seat of the car "I better be back in time to pick my son up"

"You'll be back in plenty time" and that was all that was said for the rest of the journey. He ignored her questioning the nearly all the way there and eventually she just gave up. The car came to a stop at a seemingly unthreatening skyscraper, in the heart of the city. She stared up at it before a brunette female greeted her. The woman was dressed in a blue cat suit with the same symbol as the one on the envelope on her chest.

"Sergeant Michaels. It's nice to meet you. Fury was persistent at getting you here and uh congratulations on your recovery" Elizabeth just nodded

"Thank you ma'am" the woman led her into the lobby before holding out a hand for the woman to shake

"Maria Hill, I'm sort of Fury's right hand man - er woman" Elizabeth nodded as she shook the woman's hand

"Elizabeth Michaels, three weeks ago I got blown up, now what the hell does your boss want?" Maria looked a little shocked for a second before she composed herself quickly

"Well he would like to speak with you about that"

"You mean my remarkable recovery?" she asked sarcastically, tugging her bag further up her arm as she followed after Maria towards an elevator. Once inside the brunette took a moment to examine the woman in blue. Her thick brown hair was pulled back into a tight bun and her bangs had been pulled away from her face. The elevator dinged and Elizabeth followed the woman out into a huge room bustling with hundreds of people all moving about. There was a dark skinned man in the center of the room, barking out orders and Elizabeth recognized his voice as the one of Nick Fury. Maria kept on walking and she hurried after her, fixing her bag strap. The man turned and she couldn't help but stare at the eye patch for a second before she looked down.

"Miss Michaels, nice to see you came" she sent him a glare

"Did I have much of a choice?" he smiled quickly before the frown occupied his features once more.

"Right now, I have no intention of asking you to join, I need information"

"On what?" her eyebrows furrowed

"David Kingston" her eyebrows furrowed again

"What do you mean? He died, he was right next to me when we got blown up"

"Well it's just his body was never found"

"Sometimes people get blown apart" saying that one sentence took a lot out of her.

"Well there was no evidence of that, your company never searched the surrounding area, we believe that his body was blown away from the explosion"

"I don't understand, why would you be interested in a reconnaissance mission for his body? If he is there he's been there for three weeks, how do you know you'll find him"

"Well that explosion seemed to mutate something in your blood, we did checks on the bodies of the other two, we found no changes but maybe something changed in lance corporal Kingston's blood" she stared at him a second, trying to decipher if he was making some sort of joke but he was serious.

"You think he's alive"

"It's just a thought"

"And what do you want me to do?"

"Well if you don't wish to go with us, we'll need whatever information you can give us about how he acts, how he talks and how you think he'll have handled a situation like this"

"I… I suppose. Yeah"

"I'd also appreciate if you could go with them, back to Afghanistan"

"I can't do that"

"It would only be a few days"

"I'm not going back there, I'll give you the information you need Director but please leave me out of any other endeavors you seem to be intent on sending your team into" Fury sent her a look but gave in with a heavy sigh "you don't seem to understand what I went through over there Agent Fury. Have you ever been blown up before? Have you ever felt your life end? To be the only, official survivor? Those men were my friends, I couldn't go back there"

"Not even in the hope that one of them is alive? Miss Michaels, with you there it would cut down the search time drastically. You know how he would behave in this situation-"

"He would behave the way any other Marine would!" she cut him off, her voice raising and the strain seeping into the words quickly. With an aggravated sigh she rubbed at her forehead "look, I'll help you in any way I can. I'll show you on maps, I'll put down any information I have on David, anything I can think of down to his favorite flavor of soda, but I can't go back there"

"Let me show you to somewhere a little quieter where you can set your things up" Fury replied strongly, choosing to ignore her speech, before he moved past her quickly motioning her to follow him as he headed back down the hallway she'd just came from.

The chatter around the table came to a stop as she paused at the edge, Fury at her side and a presentation set up behind them. She couldn't believe it, sitting in front of her were the Avengers, the men and women who decorated her son's bedroom. She subconsciously moved into attention, her eyes trailing over every person sat at the table. Her eyes stopped on her son's favorite, Tony Stark was sat with his feet on the table as he smirked at her. Her eyes immediately left him, trailing over Captain America. It felt very humbling to be in his presence. Marines or not he was still a famous military hero and she was a little star struck if she was completely honest. Her eyes trailed over the rest of the room, immediately putting names to faces. "Sergeant this is the Avengers, Steve Rogers, Tony Stark, Clint Barton"

"I know who they are sir" Fury paused and turned with a raised eyebrow "my son's a fan"

"Who's his favorite?" Tony asked, pulling his feet down to the floor so he could lean forward, clasping his hands under his chin as a smirk plastered itself across his face. She stared at him for a second, frantically wanting to say something that didn't mean telling him he was her son's favorite

"It changes weekly sir" he frowned, scrunching up his face

"Sir? Come on, Tony" she didn't answer and instead Fury spoke up

"Sergeant Michaels is only here to divulge some information on Kingston, after that she'll be going back to her son"

"How olds the little guy?" Steve asked with a smile

"He just turned 5, todays his first day of school actually"

"Anyway, back to business don't you say? Sergeant Michaels if you would take a seat" she nodded and dropped into the seat he motioned to and he continued to the screen "Sergeant Michaels will be giving us the information we need, for if lance corporal Kingston is still alive and out there"

"You're that marine that got blew up and survived right?" she winced internally when she heard Stark speak "shouldn't you be all, I don't know deformed?" Fury sent him a look and he just stared back. "What? It's true isn't it?"

"Blood deformity" she muttered "if we could please continue, I need to be back for my son"

"Right, I was just stating what everyone else was afraid to say" Tony rolled his eyes and leaned back in his seat crossing his arms. She fell silent and let Fury start hi presentation, her mind running over the thought that David might still be alive.

"I'll go" she said abruptly and the Director stopped talking to raise an eyebrow at her and she blushed slightly "I mean, I'll go to Afghanistan" Fury nodded.

"Wait what?" Tony spoke up "Why are you going to Afghanistan?"

"You and a few other members are going as well; we're doing a reconnaissance mission to search for Kingston's body"

"Oh yay" Tony groaned "who's going?"

"You, Rogers and Widow, you leave ASAP"

"Meaning?"

"Today" Elizabeth jumped in her chair

"Wait, today? What about my son? I need to collect clothes and things" Fury cut her off with a single dismissive wave

"Already taken care of" her eyebrows furrowed

"But"

"It's taken care of Sergeant Michaels, your bags are packed and your son is already on his way to your mother's" she was surprised at the amount of anger that hit her

"How dare you! You can't just break into my apartment without asking me, and as for taking my son! Why the hell would you do that? I need to say goodbye and"

"You have a phone" he cut her off again with an irritated look "write down how you think Kingston would act if he is indeed still alive then report back to me" her eyes narrowed at him as he left the room. She heard a sigh from one of the males but didn't bother to check who as a piece of paper was handed to her by Agent Hill.

"Have fun you guys" she could hear the smirk in the man's face as Hawkeye lent back in his seat and the others sent him a glare "what? Reconnaissance missions are easy, you search for an hour or two then sit bored out of your minds for the rest of the day" Hill handed her a pen and sat in the empty chair next to her asking questions for her to write down the answers too, despite the fact that they were on the paper.

"Hey sweetie" Elizabeth kept her eyes on her new team members and tried to force back the feeling of confusion over what the hell she'd gotten herself into.

"Hi mommy" the boy chattered happily down the other end of the line "I'm at grandma's!"

"Yeah I know. Look, mommy has to go away for a couple of days, you think you'll be alright on your own?"

"Of course I will mommy" the boy laughed happily and she couldn't help but feel the pang of guilt and annoyance that jerked to the front of her mind as she realized he was still too young to understand how serious these sort of things were. He had been too young to remember his father leaving for battle and how much she'd missed him when he had. Talking to Adam about those sorts of things just made her realize how much he didn't understand and how he probably wouldn't miss her much if she was gone for a little while longer. He probably wouldn't be able to understand if her ma tried to explain that she had died, just like he didn't when her husband had been killed in action. She felt a pang jolt her when she remembered her husband and she squeezed her eyes shut, leaning against the jet that she would soon be sat in, flying to the one place she'd vowed never to go back to.

"Yeah, of course you will" She felt her eyes water and quickly wiped at them "I'll see you soon okay? I love you"

"I love you too Mommy" then there was the dial tone at the other end of the line before it cut out completely. She sighed and stared at the phone for a second longer before closing it and slipping it back into her pocket. She turned to the team members again and watched them as they spoke quietly with one another, occasionally smiles gracing their features as they made fun of one another. She realized then just how out of place she was. These people were superheroes, geniuses, assassins. She was a simple soldier that got lucky one time by not being blown up. She hesitantly made her way over as the captain turned and motioned for her to make her way over.

"Sir" he shook his head and held out a hand for her to shake

"Steve" almost cautiously she shook hands with him before turning to the other two. The red head smiled gently and held a hand out

"Natasha" Elizabeth nodded as she shook her hand.

"Elizabeth"

"Iron man" Tony said with a grin and she forced herself not to roll her eyes


	4. Ghost That Broke My Heart

**Chapter 3**

"Hey! Hey, over here!" Elizabeth called her eyes wide as she took in the man before her. His eyes were closed but he was breathing softly. She watched him with teary, relieved eyes and stood back when the medics pushed their way forward. She wiped at her eyes with the back of her hand. "You'll be okay Davie" she rested a hand on his shoulder before he was taken from her completely. The Captain and Natasha nodded to her and she smiled at them before following after the medics. The man was covered in burns and his skin was cracked and charred. She watched as they wheeled him away and stood in the doorway of the tent awkwardly, unsure on what exactly she was supposed to do. She heard a sudden clunk of metal and spun round quickly, her instincts readying for an attack but they quickly stopped when she saw Iron Man next to her. The robot voice spoke clearly and it was an unnatural sound that made her want to shiver.

"You found him?" Tony asked, his head turning to look at the man unconscious on the medical table.

"Yeah" she murmured quietly, looking back inside. The metal suit quickly disappeared into a bracelet on his wrist and he turned with a smirk

"So what now?" he asked, leaning against one of the metal poles keeping the tent up. She gave him a confused look

"What are you talking about?"

"The Avengers? This sort of job? Are you gonna stick around? I mean I'm pretty sure the only reason you agreed to this was to make sure we found your buddy in there" he tilted his head towards the tent and she shifted awkwardly

"I don't think so, I mean I know the dangers of this kind of a job. How personal it could become, I could put my son in danger and after I just got him back, I couldn't do that" Tony nodded with a sound of agreement

"Smart choice" she couldn't help the surprised look on her face and he smirked. She couldn't help but feel as though everything on TV was a bit of a show. He was about to turn away when she spoke again.

"You're Adam's favorite" he turned with a grin

"Knew it!" she chuckled and turned back to the tent.

She pushed open the front door to her apartment with a heavy sigh of relief. She was leaving to catch an early flight to get to her mother's the next day. Her bag weighed her down, the heavy weight hanging off one of her shoulders. She dropped it onto the floor, not wincing at the heavy thud as she tugged her hair back into a loose bun but her hands stilled hearing a childlike giggling from down the hallway. Her eyebrows furrowed and she immediately leaned back to check the number on the door. Definitely hers. She slowly pulled her gun from its place tucked in the back of her jeans, covered by her flannel and made her way down the hallway, to where the laughing grew louder. She stopped at Adam's door and her eyebrows furrowed hearing her son's loud voice yelling in delight then froze hearing another familiar chuckle she hadn't heard in years but was still so finely tuned into her memory that sometimes when she was back in Afghanistan she'd used it to help her sleep. She immediately dropped the gun and stumbled back against the wall. She'd lost her mind, that was the only reasonable explanation. She stumbled back against the wall, slid down i and stared at the room door, not realizing when the voices stopped but her eyes snapped upwards when the door was tugged open and her once dead husband stood holding her son in his arms. His grin fell from his face though when he saw her watching him, her own face pale white and her eyes wide. He quickly set Adam on the floor and dropped to her side "Lizzie, jesus, baby are you okay? What happened? Did you find Dave? Is he okay? Oh god is he dead?" she just stared at him as he rambled on, her brain not being able to comprehend the fact that he was here, he wasn't some kind of fragment of her mind gone mad. He was solid, his hand holding her arm was proof of that and in no way was his voice anything but solid and filled with worry. His bright blue eyes held hers and there was a few seconds before she lurched forward into his arms with a wail.

"I thought you were dead" he immediately pulled back

"What? Honey what are you talking about? You're not making any sense, look just tell me what happened? Is David okay? Are you okay? What the hell happened?"

"David's alive" she murmured weakly, her heart was beating wildly and she couldn't help the hysterical giggle that left her as she pulled him too her again, the smell of his cologne hitting her nostrils again and she tried to take in as much as she could before she pulled away again watching as he lent across her with a worried look in her direction to pick up her gun she'd dropped on the floor. Adam stepped forward from the doorway, worried about his mother.

"Mommy?" she looked to him, and she felt herself reach towards him and pull him into her arms tightly, pressing kisses onto his face again and again, giggling when his face scrunched up in disgust.

"I'm fine honey. I'm sorry" she continued to watch him, not even wanting to blink in case this was some kind of cruel trick her mind was playing on her. She took in every movement, every tiny jerk of a hand or leg. He watched her too, the worry etched into his features as he dropped down next to her again and wrapped his arm around her shoulders, pulling her towards him and his other hand rested on his son's head, his fingers running through the boys blonde curls.

"I'm glad you're home, we missed you" he pressed a kiss onto the side of her head, making it last for a few seconds before he tucked her head into the crook of his neck, using his other hand to curl a loose strand of her hair around his finger.

**4 years later**

"Hey sweetheart where'd you put the beers?" she turned her head, slipping one of the curls behind her ear and tilted her head towards the kitchen.

"Under the counter" she turned with a smile and a wave as there was another person calling out to her, she batted him gently towards the kitchen then turned and pushed her way through the crowds, apologizing repeatedly whenever she knocked into someone a little too roughly. She came to a stop in front of the man and his blonde companion. She reached up and pressed a kiss onto his cheek and then turned to the woman, doing the same thing "Dave, Sarah, I'm so happy you made it" the blonde grinned and made the brunette woman stagger back as she threw her arms around her neck.

"And you, oh god, it feels like we haven't seen you and Andy in forever" Elizabeth chuckled, her eyes flickering to the man who grinned and reached forward to gently tug his wife back.

"You're looking good Michaels, now where's the alcohol? I wanna get drunk and threaten your husband again" the three laughed "where's the little man?"

"He's with his grandma for the weekend" she lifted her beer to her lips "and beer's in the kitchen"

"Lizzie, how much did you drink tonight?" Andrew chuckled as he half carried her to their bedroom. The party had finished and the last guest had just left with a couple of slurred goodbyes meaning he now had to take his now more than intoxicated wife to bed.

"Not as much as you'd like me to have" she slurred and he chuckled at her jumbled sentence. He tugged the covers back and helped her drop onto the bed, watching with a smile as her eyes closed for a second before she sighed "you're supposed to be dead huh?"

"What are you talking about now?"

"Back when I found David, I've been thinking about it lately, it was too easy, you were definitely dead, cause I remember hurting Andy, I remember hurting so bad, I remember times when I'd hear Adam crying and I'd just lie there cause it hurt to move without you" her eyes watered and his heart broke slightly and moved round the bed so he could crawl in next to her, letting her rest her head on his shoulder and wrapped his arms around her tightly

"Well none of that's real Lizzie, I'm here, and I'm not leaving you and Adam, ever. Okay?"

"But you were gone, I mean they came to my door with the flag and your dog tags, I remember sitting in the living room, holding Adam, just when he was a baby and I broke down, right there. God Andy it hurts to think about it, but this isn't real, it can't be, not when that life feels so real" she jumped suddenly feeling a slight tremor but the look on his face said he hadn't felt it as his arms tightened around her.

"Well it's not, Lizzie, this is all in your head, please, just get some sleep, maybe you'll feel better in the morning, I'll make you some pancakes, with chocolate chips, just how you like them" She pushed away from him suddenly, shaking her head

"No! No you, you aren't real" she slapped his hands away when he reached for her and ignored the next tremor. "None, of this is! I didn't find David in Afghanistan 4 years ago and you aren't real! You aren't alive, you're dead, I watched them bury you, I saw you!"

"Lizzi-"

"No!" the tears ran down her face the world continued to shake and crumble around her but she kept her eyes on his as the world around them fell apart and just before they were crushed by the ceiling caving in she murmured quietly "I love you"

"I love yo-" they fell into darkness before he could finish.

The sudden feeling of pressure pressing down on her chest forced her eyes open, she gasped for air, reaching for a breath she hadn't been aware she was even holding. The walls surrounding her were too close and the cover over her felt like it was suffocating her. She turned onto her front; pushing herself up onto her knees before dragging herself out of the Ranger Grave she didn't remember digging.

Her footing slipped and she fell to the sandy floor before violently kicking at the light cotton cover still wrapped around her left ankle; she caught herself with her boot, a small shock of red catching her attention but her vision was too blurred for her to find where exactly on her leg it was coming from. Without pausing for a moment, she pushed herself forward, continuously slipping on the sand and pushing herself back onto her feet until her fingers wrapped around material and pulled as roughly as she could. A flash of bright light blinded her, but she stumbled onwards, covering her eyes with her arm and covering her ears with her hands when the voices began.

She couldn't make out what they were saying, but they were shouting. Getting louder and louder the closer they got to her. The light began to come in flashes, twisting between blinding and total darkness. Suddenly a figure became slightly clearer than the rest and she stopped where she was, blinking to try and clear her vision. Slowly his muffled words began to get clearer until she heard her name being shouted

"Sergeant Michaels, I need you to stay where you are!" she took another step forward and watched as the figure reached backwards and his hand gripped a gun, immediately she rushed to grab her rifle but her hands fell to her sides quickly when she realized it wasn't on her. Confusion filled her face as she glanced around; she had never been a praying woman, but she was praying, pleading with god to remind her of where she was. The man took another step forward "Sergeant Michaels, it's Director Fury, we don't know what's going on but I need you to stay calm for me, can you do that? I don't want to shoot you, not when you're so close to getting back to Adam"

At the mention of her sons name Elizabeth felt tears prick her eyes, she let out an angry shout before trying to rush forward. It was then she felt the sharp sting in her shoulder, her entire body turned in a full circle as she tried to make out the object pierced into her body. Slowly she reached upwards and tugged it, a twist of pain and relief shooting through her as she tossed it onto the floor; the already woozy feeling began to grow and she couldn't stop her legs from turning to jelly and she couldn't stop herself from dropping onto her knees. The blood was rushing to her head and she could hear it in her ears, passing through her entire body. She could almost see the breath as it left her lungs. She was suddenly surrounded, she could feel the hands on her as she was pulled back onto her feet, but she couldn't do anything. A moment passed before she was wrapped in a blanket of blackness.

* * *

_**Hey, i'm not going to update again till i get at least 5 reviews. I know this started off really badly but hopefully the story will be better from now on.**_

_**Ally Smith**_


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